You make me smile...

Kelsey and I went out for a little driving practice, and she brought her iPod Touch. She said she had a playlist of songs I'd like. This was my favorite. It made me smile. SHE made me smile.

Blue Heaven...

Woot! There are those moments that happen that you just know are sent from Above. After all, every good and perfect gift does come from Above. And this certainly was good and perfect. (All you ABCers can just hush. Let me have my moment.)

We had been talking about the big planetarium field trip for weeks. I was a student at UNC for six (+) years and had never been inside the planetarium. I walked across the sundial a gazillion times, but never ventured inside. How I missed out on that part of the scavenger hunt when I was a pledge (yeah, yeah, yeah... new member... whatever), I don't know. It was on the list, but I missed it.

Anyway, we determined a week or so ago that we were going to go on the field trip and since returning to school with the group wasn't mandatory, Zack and I thought a milkshake at Sutton's Drug Store would be the perfect way to spend the rest of the morning.

So after watching stars and planets spin around for about 45 minutes, we headed up Franklin Street. And what to our wondering eye should appear, but a legendary Tar Heel, making a quick stop at Sutton's during finals.

After I gave him the answer to the first fill-in-the-blank question on the final ("You're Tyler Hansbrough!"), I asked him if I could get a shot of him and Zack, and Number 50, said, "Yeah, sure!"

^^^^^

See?!!!!

:-D

Zack & his posse after the brush with greatness...



Oh yeah... we went to Chapel Hill to see a show at the planetarium...
but you know, the b-ball star was the brightest!

...raisin' the boy right.

We drank from the Old Well, and then Zack announced

he wants to go to Carolina. Maybe the

legend is true!

I think this is a picture in front of South Building, but

Zack says it's a picture of him in front

of the round thing that's on the

t-shirt in the student store.

That would be us... in front of the student store.

No round thing, though.

Greenlaw... where I spent most of my waking hours

at UNC.

Z-dawg at the entrance to Arb Lane.

My sorority house... diagonally across the street

from the planetarium.


Yep... Chapel Hill... the southern part of heaven...

A Taylor Swift for every occasion...

There is no way you could ever in a million years get me to go back and relive my teen years. Bleh! It's the roller coaster ride that leaves you feeling sick without the thrill of pulling G's.

I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that spring was in the air and now the weather's gone all winter again. Or maybe it's the fact that Valentine's has come and gone. I don't know. But it seems like drama is bustin' out all over in Teen World.

Back in the day when I was going through it, Gloria Gaynor gave voice to survival of the drama trauma. Yes, I'm old.

Now, there's a new voice in town, the champion of adolescent girls: Taylor Swift.

I like Taylor Swift. She has a song for every occasion. Nearly. There's one for...

... every girl's dream ...

... unrequited love ...

... an angry break-up ...

... oh-no-you-di'int ...

... the painful-but-wise break-up ...

... a celebration of friendship ...


Life rolls on, you know, in spite of the drama. As a teacher, I hate to see my students go through it. As a mom, it tears out my heart. Of course, there IS a Forever Prince. And there is a Happily Ever After. I hope the girls that I work with know that. I pray the one in my house knows that.

In the meantime, I'm glad to have Taylor Swift floating around on You Tube to give a voice to emotion so deep.

So much Christmas fun...

Yesterday we hosted a party for Kelsey's friends from school. Bless their hearts, Kelsey and her friend Julia decided they wanted to have a fun Christmas party and invite all the girls in their grade at school. There was a passing mention of inviting boys, largely mentioned by a friend who is a boy, but both girls vetoed the inclusion of males on the grounds that the girls wanted to dance and have fun and they thought that if boys were there they'd be more focused on what they boys thought of them than on just having fun with their friends. [Insert big "Yay!!!" from Mom and Dad here.]

They planned, made invitations, kept an RSVP list, decorated, assigned refreshments and even cleaned the basement for the party. I am so proud. At the last minute I panicked and went out and bought more food and drinks, not knowing what the girls were bringing. Wouldn't you know that with the exception of a case of water and one cookie, everything I bought extra was left over. Yay for Kelsey and Julia!

I would post pictures of the event but there were a WHOLE LOT of girls singing karaoke, dancing, playing ping pong and playing DDR in my basement so I didn't get any good shots of the party itself. Just ones of before and after.

So... Here's an AFTER shot of the girls who planned the party.


And here's an AFTER shot of a major AFTERTHOUGHT... We didn't use the $.99 white vinyl tablecloth I bought and I hated to let it go to waste. So we cut it in half, taped it to the wall with painter's tape, and placed a stand next to the banner with a cup of Sharpie markers on it.

We wrote "MERRY CHRISTMAS" in the center and "Luke 2:10-11" in the upper left corner (just to remind everyone there that they were there to celebrate a Person and not just some random break from school).

Here is the banner from far away...


And here is a close up...



It was so very cute the comments we got about how they trashed our house. Know HOW they thought they "trashed our house"? Someone accidentally dropped a cupcake and tracked red and green icing on the carpet. I hope that's as trashed as it ever gets.

The other half of the tablecloth is still blank. I'm thinking that this may be the start of a tradition where we put up a vinyl tablecloth for guests to decorate at all our parties. It'll be like a guest book. Only hanging on a wall.

This was my first foray into hosting a teen party when the teen in charge is my own. I've done those parties as a teen. I've organized and hosted them as a teacher and cheerleading coach. But I had never been down this little road in the adventure. So in preparation I went to the best... the expert... the one who has done it with excellence for years.... I went to Momma G. And she, being the amazing woman of God she is, spent a huge chunk of time counseling me on everything from logistics of where to put people and what furniture to have in the space to what kind of food to serve to how to handle the crowd control and establish rules. For her wise, wise counsel I will forever be grateful.

And Momma G, if you read this in your busy schedule, know that over and over we heard from parents and girls alike, "We need to come back and do this again!" :-D

Now... fun as that was... I've gotta go inventory the Christmas gifts and head out for a little more shopping before a very special Christmas Open House tonight!

Merry Christmas Y'all!!! Hope your Chirstmas season is blessed!

Getting an education in education...

I spent two days last week at the convention for a really large Christian school association. There were some good things I learned.

The first seminar I attended was titled "The Battle for Our Families." The speaker was one of the more passionate speakers with respect to the preservation of the family unit in a society that seems bent on destroying it. He talked about having Family Markers, citing Joshua 4. Remember that chapter where the Lord told Joshua to move 12 large boulders over to the Promised Land side of the Jordan and make a monument? The whole point being that when the children asked, "What's that monument all about?" the parents would tell how the Lord delivered them out of slavery in Egypt and into the land promised to their forefathers.

He encouraged the educators as parents themselves to set markers for their own families. His wife is an art teacher and has painted each of their children's life verses on their bedroom walls. He shared about how his own dad sold a piece of property that had a huge pile of rocks on it. That rock pile had been where the speaker prayed in tough times when he was growing up. When he told his dad its significance, his dad had the pile of rocks moved onto dirt that would remain family land. Now there's a literal pile of rocks that the speaker's kids look at and ask, "What's that all about?" And he shares the legacy of faith with them.

Then he hit us with probably the best moment of the whole conference. He showed a clip from the "Opie and the Spoiled Kid" episode of The Andy Griffith Show. It's one of my favorites. If you have 25 minutes and can click the link, you can watch the whole episode. In it Opie learns from a very manipulative new kid on the block to throw tantrums and make demands of his dad. My favorite parts are how Andy handles Opie's tantrum and how Andy handles the Spoiled Kid's dad. Classic.

Earlier I had a lot of other stuff here. Largely stuff the Lord is working on in my heart concerning the philosophy of teaching and why I went back to do it. But in light of a conversation I had with Tracey via old skool email, I think I'm going to cut it off here, with the positive.

And, by the way Tracey, last night my quiet time was Hebrews 10:32 - 12:4. What do you think that means? ;-D

Have you ever seen one of these?

I hadn't until I went out into Pepper's courtyard the other day.

It's a five-leaf clover. Four-leaf clovers... sure. I have a seven year old. We're all about finding four-leaf clovers. But FIVE???

You know I'm married to Mr. Biology (aka... Mr. Walkipedia... a,aka... Mr. Google... he knows stuff... lots of stuff about...lots of stuff). So the lesson we got out of this one was about genetics.

Now usually when he starts talking about the science behind anything at all, my totally non-scientific mind drifts to other topics, like cute furry bunnies and squirrels running through the yard.

But this time my mind landed in one of the "grrr" places instead. As he went on about genetics, I thought, hummm... here we are, thrilled enough about this genetic anomaly in a weed that I'm fighting back the dog and the seven year old so that they don't step on it before one of the big kids can run inside and get the camera so that I can take a picture.

I would have to file this one under extreme irony. I'm guessing that anyone, just about, would be thrilled to find a five-leaf clover in their yard. What are the odds?

And yet... I've had so many dear women in my life recently who have had to deal with doctors and genetic counselors and ultrasound technicians and amnio procedures and myriads of other specialists and therapists because something genetic or developmental didn't go according to "normal." And the sad thing to me is that almost all these women and their husbands had to fight their own battle with the medical profession not to clear the slate and start all over again. How sad for the medical profession.

But how amazing these families are... to choose life over convenience. And to share their sweet little ones with us. They're not mistakes to be trampled. They're blessings to be treasured. All for His glory.

Finally on the way...

I am totally stealing this idea from Joel...

But props to our man, Steve! He's FINALLY publishing the long-awaited, ApParent Privilege.

Directed at parents, Steve's second book brings the message that his first (reThink) did to Student Pastors... Parents are the ones with the mandate to bring up their children in the Lord.

We parents love a good youth staff, you know we do. Goodness, Steve and Tina are two of our best BFFs. And Blake and Amber... love y'all. And Joel and Gwen... love y'all too... and are praying for you and your new addition. But much as we love all of them, we certainly don't expect them to be on the front lines of teaching our kids to love Jesus. That's our Deuteronomy 6:5-9 job.

That said... we can use all the back-up we can get, though. And surely our boundary lines have fallen in pleasant places to have the privilege of being in this particular local family of faith. Lockin' arms where we're blessed and being equipped by the best.

So... check out Steve's book... it'll be out in the coming weeks. You can pre-order it here, directly from Inquest Ministries.

To hear more from Steve, check out his blog: www.lastingdivergence.com.

Wisdom, courtesy of tobyMac...

Sometimes you find encouragement in the coolest places...

Do you know
Where you're going to
Do you like the things that life is showing you
Where are you going to
Do you know

This goes out to my man his name is True Blue
For all the nights that your daddy spent away from you
For all the days that I told you "Maybe next time"
Laid up in my studio consumed with my next rhyme
What kind of lyric can I drop to make you think twice
About the trials that you're gonna face in this life
I can lullaby even point you to the Most High
Prayin' every little thing is gonna be alright
Someday my love isn't gonna be fulfilling
Try as I may, human love it hits a ceiling
But I can sow a seed say a prayer this I know
If faith can move a mountain
Surely God can make His spirit grow in you

(Chorus)
Do you know
Where you're going to
Do you like the things that life is showing you
Where are you going to
Do you know
(repeat)

This goes out to my little man t Mac
For all the junk you've been carrying on your back
My burden's easy and My yoke is a featherweight
And this you know yet you're still a man of little faith
What can I do to spring your knowledge into how you roll
Don't you have My spirit and the letters that My people wrote
My love stretches farther than your mind can conceive
I've got a hand full of grace, a heart full of mercy
Someday My son you're gonna find My love fulfilling
Hope as I may you've got to turn and be willing
I'll take you as you are and just to add a human touch
I gave to you a son so you can understand the Father's love for you

(chorus)

God will light your path if you want Him to
Just emphasize His lead and your dreams will come true
From the Father to the Son to the multitude
He's the lover of your soul spiritual baby do you know

Dress Code Mom

Humility is a good thing, but learning to be humble isn't particularly fun.

For the past three years I been involved with the dress code assembly at our kids' (Christian) school. At one point, I would walk down the halls and hear girls yell, "Hey... Dress Code Mom!" It became sort of a running joke. The first year was wildly fun. The second, moderately fun. Last year, ugh...

Last year I was in charge of the whole deal. Now, I don't have a whole lot of sense, but what little sense I do have, I used to ask my sweet friend and fellow crusader-for-girls-to-make-wise-choices, Jenn, to talk about modesty. I stuck with two other tasks... producing a video of a panel of guys who gave their candid opinions of modest and immodest fashions and directing the fashion show of modest, dress-code-friendly fashion trends for the year.

Somewhere along the way I got the brilliant idea of asking the moms to stay after for a little devotional and discussion of the dress code. In my dreams, I'd seen it as a giant encouragement session where moms would share and hug and agree to treasure their little princesses all the days of their lives. In reality... not so much. But more on that later.

The video rocked. Props to my bud, Jason. If you are one of the micro-numbers of people I've not bugged to watch it yet, you can see it by clicking here. (And if you are one of the mega-numbers of people I've asked to watch it, but you've blown me off each time: 1) Shame on you; and 2) The link will work for you too.)

The fashion show was amazing. The girls wore their own clothes, but they dressed in a variety of super-cute, super-fashionable, modest outfits. I wrote the script. And there's where the ugliness started.

When I first started to prepare for the fashion show, I had a question about one point in the dress code. In the school handbook, it says that girls may wear capri pants that are at least mid-calf in length. Mid-calf, huh? Wonder what they consider mid-calf, I pondered. Better safe than sorry, I thought, so I had Kelsey put on a pair of capris that were borderline. I snapped a digital photo and emailed it to the principal in charge of dress code for girls. She said "NOT dress code. NOT mid-calf." Okee Dokee.

We worked it into the script and one model had a pair of capris that were cuffed. With the cuffs turned up, the pants were out of dress code. Turned down, they were fine. That's what the script said.

Once the fashion show was over, Jenn spoke about choosing to be royalty as opposed of opting for being "common." After all, we are daughters of the King. She rocked. Always does.

Then the middle and high school girls headed out for the last of their opening day assemblies and we stayed in the Fine Arts Center with the moms. Remember, I thought it was going to be a love fest. With that in mind, I thought the best thing to do would be have a little devotional to encourage the moms with God's Word. Sadly, the dress code principal had to leave to attend another meeting, so when question time came around.... Whoa! That was intense. I had NO idea capri length was so controversial.

I was floored by the sense of entitlement I was hearing. The outright questioning of authority. The lack of submission to the rules of the school that existed before any of the families applied to attend the school.

And then I was humbled. I heard my own voice saying almost exactly the same things that the other moms were saying. Only instead of it being my actual voice in the moment, it was an echo of my voice from the past, when I sat across the desk from a principal, explaining how ridiculous the dress code was at our previous school. Right there in that moment, I repented in my heart for my lack of respect for the leaders of our last school.

Thankfully, Jenn was there to bail me out. She jumped in and pointed out what an excellent reputation the school has and how many people who want to be there can't go there, for whatever reason. I am so grateful the Lord put Jenn there at that moment to be the voice of reason, reminding us of the privilege of Christian education and our duty as believers to submit to authority. It was way cool.

I have since learned that the way to change something is through prayer. Without fail, either the Lord intervenes and changes the situation or...even greater... He graciously changes my heart. He is so good.

So... Dress Code Mom is now officially retired from her former duties. Tomorrow morning I will step into a school classroom for the first time in 14 years to teach students how to write about the world from a Christian world view.

Emily P will speak about modesty to the mothers and daughters. Pray for her.

And pray for me too. I am so very excited about the new adventure and eager to see what awesome things... beyond all I can ask or imagine... the Lord is going to do.

Saving Susan - Part 3

What, if anything, can we do to save Susan?

That’s a loaded question. On the one hand, both you and I know there is nothing WE can do to save Susan. Only Jesus can save Susan. But on the other hand, the final item on the “To Do” list we have from Jesus before he ascended to heaven is this:

…go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28:19-20

When you take “The Great Commission” in Matthew and pair it with Deuteronomy 6:4-9, we’ve got a mandate as parents, coming and going. We have to teach our children to obey the Lord. There’s no getting around it. There’s no delegating it. There’s no wishing it into existence. We have to DO it.

So here’s a start, some really tiny baby steps, to head us in the direction of being the grown-ups He’s called us to be in order to shepherd our children into being the grown-ups He’s called them to be.

1. Teach by example. What is your witness in your household? Not when everyone’s at church or an extracurricular activity or a social function, but behind the doors of the place you live. Are you climbing further up and further in each day… drawing close to Jesus in your personal quiet time? Getting caught by your children reading God’s Word? Praying? Obeying even when you know it might cost you?

Do you realize that the Shadow-lands are just the beginning point of the story and that the greater adventure awaits OR do you get caught up in our equivalent of “nylons and lipstick and invitations”? Did you notice that those things can break into the categories of material possessions, appearances, and social standing? Hummm…

“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” I Corinthians 11:1

2. Be deliberate. It’s a fallen world and with few exceptions, there is nothing in the world that is going to rise up and help you parent your children to become more like Jesus. I think that’s why God’s parenting “advice” for us comes in the form of commands:

”Train a child in the way he should go…” Proverbs 22:6

”Impress [these commandments] on your children. Talk about them…” Deuteronomy 6:7

”Teach them to your children…” Deuteronomy 11:19

These statements are imperatives, which means they carry a “you gotta do this” connotation with them and not hidden qualification of “when you get a chance, if it fits into the schedule.”

3. Persevere. Parenting is for a lifetime. It is so easy to think that we’ll get a little break once the babies are weaned/ potty-trained, once they can dress themselves/ pick up their toys/ play quietly while we take a nap, once they stop needing homework help every night/ a ride everywhere/ money for everything. It’s easy and it’s dangerous.

Once they are teens they can not only entertain and take care of themselves in ways we parents have hoped for over the years, but they WANT to entertain and take care of themselves. So it gets very easy to let them. And we find ourselves going through an afternoon without really talking to them. And then maybe an afternoon and an evening. And then a day… you see what I mean. We disengage, ever grateful for the periods of calm and a little resentful when we have to step up to the plate and actually parent.

Here’s the challenge. Communicate each day. Fifteen minutes. Carve out the time to sit down and talk with your teen(s). Go for a walk after dinner. Go to their rooms to say goodnight and sit down and listen. Stay engaged the full 15 minutes…even if they don’t open up and share their deepest hopes and dreams or their darkest struggles and fears. Just be there. All there. 15 minutes. Everyday. Persevere.

”Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

So while the ending of The Chronicles of Narnia still bums me out a little concerning Susan, I go back to the beginning of the story… to the dedication of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe that C.S. Lewis writes to his goddaughter:

I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it.

Little girls do grow up and get silly for a while. So do little boys. But if they keep growing, guided by a loving Hand through the loving hands of their parents, there’s always hope they’ll come back to Narnia.

Keep moving…further up and further in.

*********************************************************

Train a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not turn from it.
Proverbs 22:6

Saving Susan - Part 2

Who is Susan?

First of all, C.S. Lewis would have fit if he knew people were dissecting his story as either allegory or, heaven forbid, Scripture. It is neither. Really, the stories are just stories. But they have an added kick of conveying deep spiritual truths to which we in Christian circles have become somewhat immune.

Lewis has his finger on the pulse of the Susans in the world, as he deals with the fact that sometimes we “get it” and sometimes we just don’t. In his explanation of the reason for writing the Chronicles and why they are NOT allegory, he shares…

I thought I saw how stories of this kind could steal past a certain inhibition which had paralyzed much of my own religion since childhood. Why did one find it so hard to feel as one was told one ought to feel about God or about the sufferings of Christ? I thought the chief reason was that one was told one ought
to. An obligation to feel can freeze feelings. And reverence itself did harm. The whole subject was associated with lowered voices; almost as if it were something medical. But suppose by casting all these things into an imaginary world, stripping them of their stained-glass and Sunday school associations, one
could make them for the first time appear in their real potency? Could one not thus steal past those watchful dragons? I thought one could.

See? The problem with kids leaving the faith isn’t new. The problem with immunity to the message isn’t new. These are the ancient perils of growing up… or not growing up, depending on which side of the coin you’re on. What happens to Susan happens to many of our kids… they fall in love with this world and lose sight of the wonder of the other.

“Oh Susan!” said Jill, “she’s interested in nothing nowadays except nylons and lipstick and invitations. She always was a jolly sight too keen on being
grown-up.”

“Grown-up, indeed,” said the Lady Polly. “I wish she would grow up. She wasted all her school time wanting to be the age she is now, and she’ll waste all the rest of her life trying to stay that age. Her whole idea is to race on to the silliest time of one’s life as quick as she can and then stop
there as long as she can.”

Lewis C.S., The Last Battle (New York: Collier Books, 1978. 135.)

Yeah… well… there’s where I get all conflicted with Lewis because in that quote I find the answer to the question: Who is Susan? Deep breath…. Susan is me. And you. Susan is all of our children and all of us.

I am alternately angry with Lewis for pointing out that Susan’s missing from Narnia because she grew up too fast and grateful to him for showing me that I’m in danger for not being grown up enough. Spiritual truth, again.

Here’s a question for you: Where are you? In the Kingdom, I mean… where are you? Are you standing there at the end of the last battle with the other kings and queens, getting ready to move further up and further in. Or are you missing… not quite there yet?

You see, you can’t take your teen by the hand and lead them “past watchful dragons” until you get by them yourself.

The thing that gets me over my issues with Lewis about Susan’s absence is that he doesn’t say things are over for her. The rest of the Friends of Narnia are there forever as a result of the railway accident and their faith that the other world is real. But Susan is M.I.A. While we know that at the time the others arrive in Narnia for the final time, Susan is immersed in the things of this world, we don’t know that she stays captivated by the Shadow-lands.

I love that ambiguity. There is absolutely no indication that Susan was at the railway station with the others. She’s just missing. And if she’s missing, there is hope she’ll turn up in the Real Narnia someday.

Saving Susan - Part 1

I love C.S. Lewis. Like nearly everyone else in the world who loves Lewis, I first fell in love with his writings when I read The Chronicles of Narnia.

As I read those stories now, I am, for the most part, Lucy, though I have to admit that I see a lot of Eustice in me too. And some Jill. But for some reason, the first time I read them, I really wanted to be Susan. She was the older, more regal queen-- sophisticated, wise, brave, courted by princes. Then I read The Last Battle.

Now, if YOU haven’t read The Last Battle, you probably ought to stop here. Consider this the spoiler alert. Instead, go find all seven books of the Chronicles and read them, but for goodness sake, read them in the order in which they were originally published and not in Narnian chronological order. Lewis published them in the order he did for a reason… they really do build upon each other, spiritual truth upon spiritual truth, so don’t let the pure plot of the story get in the way of the most important ideas.

Spoiler alert aside, The Last Battle made me so angry at C.S. Lewis that I vowed I am not about to read the next book. I’m done with this stuff. Oh yeah… this is The Last Battle… and the last book in the series, no matter which way you read it. So much for catharsis.

You see, what made me so very mad was that at the end of the series, the end of Narnia, the end of the characters’ time in the Shadow-lands of either world, Susan was missing.

“Sir,” said Tirian, when he had greeted all these [ancient kings and queens of Narnia]. “If I have read the chronicles aright, there should be another. Has not your Majesty two sisters? Where is Queen Susan?

“My sister Susan,” answered Peter shortly and gravely, “is no longer a friend of Narnia.”

“Yes,” said Eustace, “and whenever you’ve tried to get her to come and talk about Narnia or do anything about Narnia, she says ‘What wonderful memories you have! Fancy your still thinking about all those funny games we used to play when we were children.’”

Lewis C.S., The Last Battle (New York: Collier Books, 1978. 134-135.)

Are you kidding me? I was there… Susan went in through the wardrobe, got a bow and arrows and a dagger from Father Christmas, walked with Aslan as he strode toward the Stone Table, watch the first ray of dawn strike Aslan’s lifeless form, saw the Table crack as the magic worked backwards and Aslan came to life, fought only when necessary to defeat the White Witch, and was crowned a Queen of Narnia at Cair Paravel… and once a king or queen in Narnia, always a king or queen in Narnia… right? And that was just in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. For goodness sake, Susan was my hero. What do you mean she doesn’t make it back to Narnia at the end? She had the same adventures as the rest of the children and yet Susan is missing at the end!!! Jack Lewis, you’ve gotta be kidding me!

But sadly, he wasn’t.

Lewis, over fifty years ago, had his finger on something that has come to fruition at an alarming rate in recent years. Our kids are leaving the faith. They categorize the spiritual training they receive in their youth as “funny games we used to play when we were children.” The difference between Lewis’ portrayal of older adolescent apostasy and what’s happening in our world today is that not only are we losing Susan, but Peter and even Lucy aren’t doing too well either.


We have to ask ourselves a couple of hard questions:
1. Who is Susan?
2. What, if anything, can we do to save Susan?